Opening Bell: 03.07.11

JPMorgan Number One Investment Bank Driven By Emerging Market Deals (Bloomberg)
The world’s best-paid investment bank in 2010 was JPMorgan Chase & Co. (JPM), which ranks No. 1 in the Bloomberg 20 for the third year in a row, with total fees of $4.14 billion. The bank also led the field in fees from bond and equity issues. Morgan Stanley supplanted Goldman Sachs Group Inc. (GS) for the No. 2 position in total fees for 2010, earning $3.67 billion. Goldman Sachs is No. 3 overall with $3.60 billion. It ranks No. 1 in earnings from mergers and acquisitions, as it has every year since the Bloomberg 20 started in 2004.

Raj Rajaratnam's Biggest Bet Yet May Be To Take The Stand (WSJ)
The 53-year-old founder of Galleon Group has told people close to him that he intends to testify at his own trial, the biggest legal showdown over insider trading in a generation.

Barclays Awards Chief Executive $11 Million Bonus (Bloomberg)
Bob Diamond was awarded a 6.5 million-pound bonus for 2010 and a further 2.25 million pounds depending on the lender’s performance, London-based Barclays said in a statement today. His base salary will rise to 1.35 million pounds from 250,000 pounds after he became CEO on Jan. 1.

Brian Moynihan Said To Look Ahead To 'Normal' Performance (Bloomberg)
Bank of America CEO Brian Moynihan will tell investors tomorrow what profits to expect as the U.S. economy stabilizes and detail progress on his vow to increase shareholder equity, said two people with knowledge of his plans. The bank’s guidance to investors will include credit losses and estimates for return on tangible equity, a measure of shareholder returns that excludes goodwill, said the people. “The last two or three years have been anything but normal for Bank of America, and with indications we’re entering into a better environment, the company wants to give a sense of how its businesses ought to perform,” said David Havens, a managing director at Nomura Holdings Inc. “The disappointment that could occur is that the presentation will reflect the new reality” of lowered returns after U.S. bank regulations.

Most Economists Say Fed Easing Is Helping (CNBC)
The survey from the National Association for Business Economics found 62.4 percent of the economists polled think the central bank's $600 billion stimulus plan is working. Another 21.8 percent see the policy, which has come under fire from some conservative politicians and a number of emerging market policy makers, having no impact. Another 15.8 percent said the program was actively harmful.

Mark Cuban, Charlie Sheen In Talks (ESPN)
Cuban confirmed Sunday evening that he's had several conversations with Sheen recently about developing programming for HDNet, the cable network Cuban owns. "You've got somebody that everybody has a whole lot of interest in who's doing some interesting things, to say the least, and we always look for interesting programming by featuring interesting people doing interesting things," Cuban said before the Mavericks' game against the Memphis Grizzlies. "I reached out and we've had some conversations, and we're going to work on doing some things."

UBS Names Joint Global Heads for Investment Banking Division (Bloomberg)
The bank named Matthew Grounds and Simon Warshaw joint global heads of its investment banking division after John Wall retired.

Another top exec is departing Goldman's GSAM (IM)
Steve McGuinness, co-chief operating officer of Goldman Sachs Asset Management's investment management business and global head of distribution and a 19-year firm veteran, is leaving the Goldman next month.

Moody's Downgrades Greece (WSJ)
Moody's Investor Service Inc. on Monday slashed Greece's credit rating by three notches and signaled it could cut it even further, dragging the European sovereign deeper into junk-grade territory. The ratings agency downgraded Greece to B1 from Ba1, and kept its negative outlook. Standard & Poor's and Fitch Ratings both rate the country slightly higher at double-B-plus, with a negative outlook.

Dog ate toes of diabetic Ore. owner as he slept (AP)
A dog ate three of his owner's toes as the diabetic man slept, most likely out of instinct to help remove diseased flesh, animal experts say. James Little, 61, called 911 on Tuesday to say his dog had eaten the body parts while he was sleeping. He told The Associated Press on Friday that he is "doing fine." Little suffers from diabetes, of which one symptom is numbness in the hands or feet. The dog, a Shiba Inu, was acting on its instinct to remove diseased flesh and does not appear to be dangerous, said Douglas County Animal Control Deputy Lee Bartholomew.